Day: August 17, 2009

Hancock United Church of Christ (1893)

by Dan//Churches, Craftsman, Lexington, Queen Anne, Shingle Style

Hancock Church

In 1819, the First Congregational Society of Lexington became Unitarian. The minority of Trinitarian Congregationalists attended the local Baptist church for a time, but in 1868 formed the Hancock Congregational Society. The Congregation occupied the old Lexington Academy building until 1893, when the current Hancock Congregational Church was built. The church, designed by Paine and Lewis, features both Shingle Style siding and fieldstone walls. Many additions have been made over the years, including a new stuccoed wing in 1951.

Lexington Masonic Building (1822)

by Dan//Greek Revival, Lexington, Organizations, Schools

Lexington Academy

Opposite the Battle Green in Lexington is the Lexington Masonic Building. It was originally built in 1822 to house the Lexington Academy, which only lasted eleven years. From 1835 to 1837, it was used for the Lexington Manual Labor Seminary, an early trade school, and in 1839 the building was taken over by the state to become the first Normal School in America. A school for the training of teachers, it was established by Horace Mann, who chose Rev. Cyrus Pierce to run it. This educational experiment proved successful and soon moved to larger quarters, first to Newton in 1844 and then to Framingham in 1853. The building was later used for tenements and a grocery store. It served as the Hancock Congregational Church from 1868 to 1893. The former school became a Masonic Lodge in 1917.